lana welcomes you in. Plush red velvet chairs and cozy booths beckon you to sit down and stay a while. Expansive artwork adorns the walls and is painted in the style of Frederic Edwin Church, a member of the Hudson River School from whose Columbia-County house and estate the restaurant takes its name. The wait staff is attentive, knowledgeable, and personable. Olana is the pretty girl who appears to have everything going for her (without engendering the pesky inner conflict of wanting to hate her)...but can she deliver substance to boot? Let’s have a taste.

On a recent visit, the cauliflower soup, which was poured atop a bowl of cheddar flan, mushrooms, and spiced almonds, was a worthy starter. Cheddar and cauliflower are a classic, comforting pair, and the almonds raise the hearty dish to hearty, new levels. The Mâche and Beet Salad is served with crispy sheep Brie, candied hazelnuts, succulent pancetta, and lightly glazed with a tarragon vinaigrette. The savoury flavour of the pancetta and Brie cut right through the sweetness of the beets and the nuts, making them a good match. A salad that could have been overpowering was gracefully kept low-key, validating the extreme attention to detail found at Olana. Other noteworthy starters include the octopus salad with crispy chickpea, celery, the roasted lobster with rouille ravioli, and the Hamachi Crudo with pickled Fresno chilies.

It's evident that masterfully blending juxtapositions is Olana's forté. The entrée list is small and straightforward, divided between Fish and Meat. Being nearly virginal on the Sea Urchin Consumption Scale (SUCS), we asked our server about the creature’s inclusion in Olana’s risotto. He informed us that sea urchin isn’t fishy per se, but that it is definitely “of the sea.” That was enough to dissuade me, but my companion plunged in anyways. I decided to order the veal and ricotta cappellacci, presented with Sicilian pistachios, grana padano cheese, and a roasted tomato sauce. Nicely plated, the pinwheels of delicate, homemade pasta covers slightly melted cheese and ground meat. The freshness of the ingredients combined into a harmonious whole that is gently filling without being overwhelming. In this case, the whole is definitely greater than the sum of its parts.

The much-considered risotto, which included king crab, copious slices of black truffle, and frothy truffle cream alongside the sea urchin, ended up being delightful, even to my seafood-sensitive palate. It was indeed oceanic, just as our server had described, but he hadn’t been sugar-coating his description in order to make it sound better than it was, as waiters often do. How refreshing! Apparently honesty and excellent service are on the menu here as well.

Now, moving on to sweeter things. I’m a sucker for fillings inside doughy wrappers (think dumplings, blintzes, pierogies), and so naturally the sambuca chocolate crêpe dessert called to me. Never before had I seen a chocolate crêpe whose pancake was so rich, dark and chocolate-y. Aside from the visual impact next to a splash of raspberry coulis, the crêpe was well paired with some Valrhona pudding and cocoa nib ice cream on the side. Delicious.